The Impact of Social Isolation and Deviant Social Association on Criminal Deviance

This study focused on the connection between social isolation, deviant social association, and criminal deviance in young adults. The relationship was studied using data from the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, Wave 2. Relationships between social isolation, deviant social association, criminal deviance, race, gender, and socioeconomic status of the participants’ neighborhoods were analyzed using this data. Significantly, social isolation and deviant social association were related to criminal deviance. Deviant social association was also correlated with social isolation; moreover among those with low levels of deviant social association, higher levels of social isolation increased the likelihood of higher levels of criminal deviance. Significant differences were found for gender as well. Males were found to engage in more criminally deviant behavior overall and were more affected by deviant social association. However social isolation had a stronger impact on criminal deviance among females. The findings from this study indicate that more research needs to be done on social isolation and criminal deviance in general, and that more research needs to be done with young adults.